నైరూప్య

A Scrupulous Overview on Controlled Release Fertilizers

Madhavi V, Madhavi G, Reddy AVB

With the increase in the world population and the demand for food, new agricultural practices have been developed to improve food production through the use of more effective pesticides and fertilisers. Controlled release technology is an invaluable scientific tool for improving performance and safety of chemicals, which involve materials such as barriers surrounding active materials to deliver the latter at the optimum time and rate needed. This article reviews the recent trends, developments and future applications of controlled release fertilizers (CRFs) produced from renewable resources. Polymers based CRFs are attracting increased attention due to environmental concerns and the realization that global resources are finite. Application of polymer and nanotechnology in agriculture particularly in the design of CRFs, the distinctions and classification of CRFs and the economical, agronomical and environmental aspects of CRFs has been revised putting into account the development and synthesis of CRFs. The presentation also examines the technological and future challenges discussed in bringing these materials to a wide range of applications, together with potential solutions, as well as discusses the major industry players who are bringing these materials to the market.